Instructional Technology Conference 2008

Title: Microblogging - Your Content in 140 Characters

Name: Bryan M Booth & James Dye

Audience Level: All

Audience: General

Length: one hour

Abstract:
The newest emerging form of internet communication is called microblogging. Services such as Twitter and Jaiku allow users to communicate short bursts of information - usually restricted to 140 characters - to a limitless number of followers. Can professors and students effectively use microblogging as a collaborative tool? What kind of pedagogical considerations would be important in employing this technology? This session will familiarize participants with microblogging and address these important questions.

Description:
By demonstrating the basic principles and mechanisms of microblogging, this session will address the use of instant communications in an increasingly mobile world. Since microblogging is a platform independent technology (running on desktops, notebooks, laptops, cellular telephones, and any other mobile device that can access the internet or send an SMS message), it is accessible to the vast majority of university level faculty and student populations. The potential to use this technology as a tool for more effective collaboration in the classroom should not be underestimated.

This presentation will be divided into three sections. The first section will introduce and demonstrate the fundamentals of microblogging, as well as several different interface choices for using the technology. The second section of the presentation will focus on audience participation with microblogging. Audience members are encouraged to bring laptop / notebook computers or other wireless devices to assist with this section. The final section of the presentation will be a brief question and answer period to focus on the pedagogical considerations and possible practical applications of microblogging in a classroom or distance education environment.

Ultimately, the goal of this presentation is to give audience members / participants sufficient knowledge of microblogging to identify the potential applications of the technology in their own programs.

Session Type: Lecture/Presentation

Contact information/affiliation:
Bryan M Booth
Assistant Coordinator of Operations
Regents Online Campus Collaborative
Tennessee Board of Regents
1415 Murfreesboro Rd, Ste 682
Nashville, TN 37217
615.366.4415

James Dye
Assistant Coordinator of Technical Services
Regents Online Campus Collaborative
Tennessee Board of Regents
1415 Murfreesboro Rd, Ste 682
Nashville, TN 37217
615.366.4420

Equipment: projector, wireless internet connection, 2 wired internet connections

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